Wednesday, June 30, 2021

Ethnic Disconnect in The Liquor Store Industry

 So - one thing that I have noticed over the years is that around 70% of the liquor stores I have been in over the last several years are owned by someone who is not Caucasian. However, when I attend various industry events, 70% of the attendees are Caucasian. 

If you are an owner or manager of a beer, wine or liquor store and are of Asian, Latino, or Middle Eastern descent, I'd enjoy learning why you don't attend industry events like trade shows, conferences, and expos.

The goal here is to make sure these industry events offer something that makes you want to attend.

You can reach me at kevinantosh@gmail.com or on my cell at 208-340-5632.



Wednesday, June 23, 2021

New Issues for Microsoft Dynamics RMS Users

 We are just a few weeks away from the July 13th, 2021 official end of life date for the very popular Microsoft Dynamics RMS point of sale software. Based on some recent phone calls and emails that I have had with companies in the US that still plan on supporting RMS, there are a few things that retailers need to be aware of:

  1. Plan on support ending for the various plug ins and add-ons for RMS or plan on there being no enhancements to these plug ins and add ons (new versions, bug fixes, etc)
  2. Plan on paying double for RMS support - of the few companies that I spoke with, most mentioned charging a premium service rate (eg $135 to $175/hour plus an annual support contract that costs $400 to $1500 for a typical retail store)
  3. Plan on longer support response times. With Microsoft no longer offering any resources, each individual company will need to figure out support requests on their own. This could easily take longer for a tech to work through an unusual or unfamiliar support issue/request
  4. Any plug ins and add ons for RMS that will not be phased out for another 1-3 years may see a price increase if there is a monthly fee involved. It is just going to cost more to maintain and support anything related to RMS.

Soooo - the idea of using RMS past July 2021 may be less appealing you if support alone costs $1500 a year plus finding someone to support RMS will become more and more challenging over the coming years.

If this is enough to prompt you to take a serious look at replacing RMS, here is a video that might help guide you to which POS system would make a good replacement:  https://youtu.be/fzqc7gmrJ58

Questions, comments, anything that you would want me to share with RMS users in the US? You can reach me at 208-340-5632 or kevinantosh@gmail.com


 

Wednesday, June 9, 2021

NRC CounterPoint users group and forum is closed

 Hi - as many of you know, the person who managed the NCR CounterPoint users group and forum passed away last year. His dedication to helping NCR CounterPoint users will be missed.

I have been asked if I would take over the forum and users group but I honestly don't have the time plus my computer that had NCR CounterPoint ceased functioning so my only NCR CounterPoint resources are all the printed technical manuals.

With NCR no longer offering support for older versions of CounterPoint and CounterPoint SQL, you should contact an NCR Partner/Reseller/Dealer to see what options are available to upgrade to a more current version of the software. 

Just like older cars, finding support for older POS systems becomes more and more difficult over time (look what is happening with the Microsoft Dynamics RMS software - over 35,000 stores using RMS are having to replace RMS or pay a big premium in support costs). 

The time has come to replace RMS and older versions of NCR CounterPoint.

Here are two NCR Dealers that I have know for years and recommend:

Retail Control Systems (RCS)

LPA Retail Systems

Of course, if anyone ends up creating a new CounterPoint users group and forum for older versions of NCR CounterPoint, please let me know and I will get the word out!

 

 





Wednesday, June 2, 2021

4 Tips for Beer, Wine and Liquor Retailers

 

Based on 30+ years of working in the retail space as well as recent site visits to over 120 beer, wine and liquor stores in the US
 
 

 
Suggestions, comments or questions: kevinantosh@gmail.com or 208-340-5632.